View full sizeRobert Sciarrino/The Star-LedgerEmily Bengels, second from right, signs yearbook with her students Sammi Triono, left, Cassie Smith and Chandni Khawaja, on the last day of the school year. Bengels, a teacher at Readington Middle School, is one of ten NJ teachers to be invited to the Honeywell Educators @ Space Academy this year in Alabama.

HUNTERDON COUNTY — Emily Bengels’ eyes have been fixed on the stars since childhood, when her mother regaled her with science-fiction tales and her father pointed out constellations during outdoor walks.

Now, the Hunterdon County teacher will be able to fly among them. Sort of.

Bengels, 37, is at a teachers-only space camp at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in Huntsville, Ala., where she will command a space mission, pilot a moon lander and undergo survival training.

She’s one of 10 teachers from New Jersey and 185 educators worldwide who have been invited to participate in a two-week program called Honeywell Educators @ Space Academy, organized by the Morris Township-based manufacturing giant, Honeywell International.

It’s a program that aims to give them a close look at space exploration, with hopes they will be able to take those ideas back to their classrooms.

"Science isn’t just about facts and data," said Bengels, who teaches gifted and talented classes at Readington Middle School. "It’s also about curiosity and imagination. That’s what I want my students to understand most."

One set of teachers, including one of the New Jersey educators, finished their seven-day stint last week, while a second group, which includes Bengels, left for Alabama on Friday and will be there through Thursday. The second group also includes two teachers from Bayonne and two from Bergen County.

The program is held at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, home of the U.S. Space Camp program. The center, owned by the state of Alabama, also has a museum featuring more than 1,500 artifacts related to the space program.

View full sizeRobert Sciarrino/The Star-LedgerEmily Bengels a teacher at Readington Middle School, is one of five N.J. teachers to be invited to the Honeywell Educators @ Space Academy this year in Alabama.

To Bengels, a chance to participate in space camp is almost a dream come true.

Some of her most vivid memories revolve around shuttles and astronauts. She said she can still recall the thrill of watching the Columbia shuttle liftoff when she was in first grade.

First launched in April 1981, the shuttle made history when it orbited the Earth that year, and made headlines again in 2003 when it disintegrated upon re-entry to the Earth’s atmosphere, killing all seven crew members.

"It made me feel how the future was wide open," Bengels said of the 1981 launch.

The training Bengels is undergoing in Alabama is similar to what astronauts and space officials experience, said Marcia Lindstrom, director of education at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center.

In one challenge, the teachers must use their engineering skills by designing and building a heat shield using common materials.

The teachers will also command a simulated shuttle mission, with some steering the shuttle and others working from Mission Control. The teachers must launch the shuttle, dock with a faux International Space Station, deploy a satellite and handle any problems that occur along the way.

The visuals might be computer generated, Lindstrom said, but the experience is as authentic as one can get without being launched into space.